The present invention relates to a handle for a water ski towline with engagement and/or disengagement means for a safety belt for water skier, this belt being applied approximately at the chest level of the skier.
It is known that a water skier must expend great strength during starting while emerging from the water; this strength exerts great stress especially on the arm muscles. To make water skiing possible even for those persons who do not possess the required strength in their arms, especially elderly persons and above all beginners, the present invention has been provided. The invention requires absolutely no arm strength; such strength merely has to be expended for balancing during starting and during skiing on the water. The forces occurring during those steps are very minor. After starting, the disengagement means can be activated, if desired, without letting go of the handle; it is merely necessary to straighten the index and middle fingers of the right hand, thus releasing the connection between the handle and the safety belt. At this point, water skiing can proceed as usual. It is also possible to re-engage the safety belt again during skiing, if the arms become tired after a rather long skiing period. In case of waves, provision is made to fashion a portion of the water ski towline as a rubber cable which has the purpose of compensating for the differing velocities of the towing boat or the towing device and the water skier, which difference can ensue primarily from the waves. Furthermore, an impressive effect can be achieved by the rubber cable when slalom skiing, in that higher speeds are attained after turning.
Attempts have also been made to improve the hold on the handle by having a contact element, to which the water ski towline is attached and is guided at the handle, press against the fingers and/or the topside of the hand and hold same, so to speak, in clamping engagement (see DOS [German Unexamined Laid-Open Application] 2,202,841). However, this prior art arrangement provides no advantage as compared to conventional handles because the water skier's arms must still absorb the necessary forces. Furthermore, in case of a false start, there is the danger that the water skier cannot free his hands from the clamp and is pulled underwater, which can be very troublesome at the least or be even worse, if the water skier comes to a fall while at top speed, for example, after turning during slalom skiing.
These last-mentioned disadvantages are avoided by a preferred embodiment of the present invention in that the entire force produced by the water ski towline is transmitted, via the handle, by means of a connecting strap through the safety belt to the body of the water skier. The disengagement means at the handle is dimensioned so that, for example, in case of a false start, after the handle has been released, the connection with the towline and the safety belt is severed, and thus nothing can happen. The ready disengagement at the handle is effected by the feature of the preferred embodiment that the disengagement lever, during its connection with the pull strap, which latter is joined, with an adjustable strap, to the safety belt of the water skier, has an unobstructing corresponding inclination with respect to the towing direction and, after the handle has been released and/or after the index and middle fingers of the right hand have been straightened, slides off this inclination and completes the separation of the water ski towline and the safety belt. A flat or plate spring further enhances the disengagement effect. The spring furthermore serves the purpose of improving the locking engagement of the pull strap of the safety belt.
These and further object, features and advantages of the present invention will become more obvious from the following description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings which show, for purposes of illustration only, a single embodiment in accordance with the present invention.